The Upside of Anger
by tatygirl90
Summary: The first step is admitting you have a problem.
1. Chapter 1

"Dorota, what is this?" Blair growled lowly.

Dorota knew from the sound of Blair's voice that she was angry. Blair was a formidable force when she wasn't angry. But when she became angry, she became unstoppable.

"It's Miss Serena." Dorota whispered.

"And why is she the top of the best dressed New Yorkers?" asked Blair rubbing her temples.

"I honestly don't know, Miss Blair."

Blair threw the newspaper as far as she could and a little scream escaped her.

"I can't believe they think Serena is the best dressed New Yorker. I take care to dress impeccably when I go out and Serena just throws whatever on and she wins?"

Dorota edged slowly out of the room and went to find a phone. Maybe Mr. Dan would know what to do for Miss Blair?

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"Hello, this is Dan." Dan said into his cell.

"Mr. Dan, I'm sorry to bother you so early in the morning. But I couldn't think of anyone else to call." Dorota said quietly.

"Don't worry about it. I was already awake. What can I do for you, Dorota?" he asked picking up his coffee cup and taking a long drink.

"Miss Blair is in one of her moods and I was wondering if you could calm her down?"

Dan put down his coffee cup and looked at his watch. He didn't have anything pressing to do and it was always a pleasure to see Blair.

"Sure, I'll be right over."

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"What are you doing here, Humphrey?" Blair asked throwing shoes out of her closet. She couldn't find the exact one she wanted to wear.

"I've come to take you out." He said.

"I already had plans, Humphrey." Blair said standing up and looking at a black pump.

"Yeah, well cancel them. I'm taking you on a tour of my favorite places."

Blair stopped and looked at him quizzically before she placed her hand over her mouth and started to laugh heartily.

"Oh please. I'm going shopping." She said

"There are stores on the tour." He said running his hand through his hair.

"Fine, let me find my other pump." She said returning to her closet.

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"A bookstore? You brought me to a bookstore?" Blair asked incredulously

"Yup, it's one of my favorite places." He said taking her hand and suddenly placing a kiss on it.

Blair slipped her hand away, but she had to admit, it was nice. Humphrey was always the perfect gentlemen.

"There's a section, I think you may like." He said leading her to the style section.

He saw her eyes light up. He had a feeling Blair would like these books.

"Dorota told me about Serena getting first place on the best dressed list. So I thought I'd bring you here for some style tips. Oh and I'd like you to take a look at the anger management section." He said.

Blair whirled around and put her hands on her hips.

"I do not have an anger management problem, Humphrey." She said glaring at him.

"I think you do Blair."

"I'm not going to argue with you and prove your point," she said running a finger over the glossy book. "I'm going to go calmly over to the section and look at the books."

Blair marched past him and Dan chuckled to himself. That was easier than he thought. But he had a feeling he hadn't seen the end of angry Blair.


	2. Chapter 2

"Where are we, Humphrey?" Blair asked suspiciously.

"The Manhattan Center for Mental Health." Dan said, opening the glass door.

"Humphrey, I don't believe you. I'm the farthest thing from mentally ill." She said, clearly offended. She dug her heels into the carpeting in the reception room. Her reputation would be shot to hell if she were seen here.

"I think that's up for debate, what with your insane need to be the best at everything. But that's not why we're here." He said yanking her arm. She stumbled a bit and he easily caught her.

"Then why are we here?" she growled lowly.

"Anger management classes." He said simply.

"I read those books Humphrey; I really don't need to attend classes."

"You have a serious anger problem, Blair. Why not stay for one class?" he asked.

"What do I get if I stay?" she asked.

Dan sighed. Blair always tried to get something for herself out of a situation.

"What do you want?" he asked.

"Take me on another one of your tours."

Dan raised his eyebrows. He wasn't expecting that from her. There had to be something else.

"What else?" he asked, suspiciously.

"Nothing else," she said pulling a bottle of sanitizer out of her purse. "I'd like to see the city according to Dan Humphrey is all."

He still wasn't sure if she was kidding, but she looked pretty serious. He decided that he would take her up on her offer.

"Deal." He said extending his hand. She took it with a firm grip and they shook on it.

"Now lead me to these classes and hurry before someone I know sees me." She said pulling her shades over her eyes.

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"Welcome to the première anger management class!" Said an overly cheery woman in blue, Blair could tell this was going to be a long day.

"I want to commend all of you for coming here today. You've taken the first step by admitting that you have a problem."

"You didn't tell me that they were pushing this New Age nonsense down my throat." Blair hissed to Dan, who shushed her.

"Just listen." He said.

"I'd like each one of you to introduce yourself and tell us why you're here." The woman said. "I'll go first. I'm Martha Wilcox and I'm your instructor."

Blair sighed. Why couldn't they just get on with it?

One by one they went around the circle. Before she knew it, it was her turn.

Blair stood up and wrung her hands. "I'm Blair Waldorf."

"And why are you here, Blair?" asked Martha.

"My friend thinks I have an anger management problem." She grumbled.

"You don't think you have an anger problem?" asked Martha doubtfully.

Blair immediately wanted to tell Martha how bad she looked in her blue tracksuit. But she bit her tongue.

"No, I don't think I have a problem."

"Tell me. How did you feel when your friend was named Best Dressed New Yorker?" she asked.

Blair looked angrily at Dan. Did he tell her about that? How could she possibly know about that?

"No, your friend didn't tell me. I read the newspaper and I always look into my clients' backgrounds. But we're not talking about me. How did you feel, Blair?"

Blair fumbled with her black blouse. She'd been upset and a bit sad that Serena had beaten her again. Even it was unintentionally.

"I wasn't angry, per se." she started. "It was more like I was sad."

"Sadness is a form of anger, Blair." Martha said.

She vaguely remembered hearing something like that in psychology class. But it couldn't possibly refer to her, could it?

"Why don't you take a seat, Blair," she said gesturing to the seat next to Dan.

Blair sat down stunned. Maybe it was possible that she _actually _had a problem with anger?


	3. Chapter 3

"How are your classes going, Miss Blair?" Dorota asked while folding towels.

Blair threw herself on the couch. She reached inside her purse and pulled out her eye mask. She started to pull it over her eyes. But thought better of it, she was only going to take a nap.

"It's going well, Dorota, I guess." Blair said, closing her eyes.

"Have they taught you how to control your anger, yet?"

Blair sat up. It was no use to trying to take the nap and what was she, five? Who takes naps in the middle of the afternoon anyway?

"Right now, we've just been talking about what causes the anger."

"And what do you think causes your anger, Miss Blair?" Dorota asked, coming to take a seat next to her.

"Apparently I have passive-aggressive issues with my mother. Oh and there's the inferiority complex to Saint Serena."

"Do you think all of that's true?"

"Somewhat. Honestly I've known for years about those things, but I never put a label on them."

Dorota patted Blair on the back and smiled at her.

"I'm glad you're getting the help you need, Miss Blair."

"Yeah, yeah me too, but there is an upside to all of this," Blair said, standing and slipping on her pumps.

"What's that?"

"It's been nice spending time with Humphrey." Blair said, sighing slightly.

"Does Miss Blair have a crush?" Dorota asked innocently.

Blair turned on her. She started to yell, but then she remembered she was in anger management classes for a reason. So she counted to ten and then calmly said, "Humphrey is fine human being."

Dorota smirked as Blair climbed the stairs to her bedroom. She wondered how much effort it had taken Blair to say that.

**A/N: **Sorry this chapter is so short. I was busier than usual today. I'll try to make up for it in the next few days!


	4. Chapter 4

"The first tip for controlling anger is: _Take a timeout_." Dan said, dragging Blair away from the young woman who had snatched the Luella dress she had wanted.

"I haven't had timeout since I was six and pushed Serena down in the sandbox." Blair huffed.

"Yeah well, you're having one now." He said, sitting her down on a plush seat near the ladies' dressing room.

Blair flounced into her seat and shot Dan a seething look. He was having entirely too much fun with this. She started to wonder if he enjoyed torturing her.

He sat down next to her and pulled a book out of his bag.

"I didn't peg you for the type to carry a murse, Humphrey." She said.

"Ha-ha. It's a shoulder bag, Blair. I thought you were a style inventor. Clearly you should keep up with male fashion as well female fashion. Shoulder bags are all the rage now." He said, opening the book.

"Yeah, maybe in Brooklyn," Blair scoffed. "What are you reading?"

Dan looked up from his book and eyed Blair suspiciously. He looked like he wanted to say something, but thought better of it. It was wise not to provoke her and undo all of her progress.

"_Sons and Lovers_ by D.H. Lawrence," He said, showing the cover to her. "A professor recommended it to me."

"What's it about?" she asked.

"Do you honestly care, Blair?"

"Actually I do, Humphrey. We're friends, aren't we? Friends care about each other's interests, right?" she said smoothing a wayward curl back from his eye.

Dan caught her hand and held it for a minute. Were they just friends? He wanted to ask her if that's all he was to her. But he couldn't bring himself to do it.

Blair pulled her hand out of his and stood up. "I think it's time we leave, don't you? There's nothing keeping me here since that little witch took the dress right out of my hands."

Dan chuckled. He had thought she had forgotten about that, but Blair has a memory like an elephant. She never forgot anything and she always wanted vengeance.

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"Dorota, where's my mother?" Blair asked, coming down the stairs.

Dorota was silent. She didn't want to tell Miss Blair that her mother had called and canceled.

"Dorota?"

"Miss Eleanor couldn't make it, Miss Blair. She sends her regrets."

Blair could feel the rage welling up inside of her. It was like she was a second thought to her mother. They had planned this day out weeks beforehand. What could she possibly have to do that she couldn't set aside for her own daughter?

Blair reached for the nearest thing to throw, but then she remembered the second tip from the sheet Martha had given out. _Once you're calm, express your anger. _ She counted to ten and took deep breaths. Breathe in, breathe out. Repeat. "Dorota, would you hand me my cell?" "What are you going to do, Miss Blair?" Dorota asked worriedly. "I'm going to call my mother and tell her how I feel." "I don't think that's a good idea, Miss Blair." Dorota said. "I don't pay you to think. Now, my cell phone, please?" Dorota took Blair's cell out of her apron pocket and handed it to her. Blair pressed the speed dial and waited for her mother to pick up. "Eleanor Waldorf, how can I help you?" "Mother, its Blair." "Oh honey, I'm sorry about canceling on you, but I'm swamped with work." Eleanor said. "That's fine, Mother. But we had this day planned for weeks. It really hurts my feelings that you couldn't take one day off of work for your only child." Eleanor was silent on the other end. Blair sighed and continued, "Its okay. I just wanted to tell you that. Goodbye for now." Blair closed the phone and handed it back to Dorota. She looked up to see Dorota wiping a tear out of her eye. "What's your problem, Dorota?" "I'm so proud of you, Miss Blair." She said, giving Blair a one-armed hug. Blair hugged her back. It was nice having Dorota, even if her mother wasn't there. She supposed that would have to do for now. 


	5. Chapter 5

"Where are you taking me, Humphrey?" Blair asked.

Dan didn't answer. Instead he told the taxi driver to continue on the route.

"Did you hear me?" Blair said poking Dan in the shoulder.

"I heard you Blair. I just chose not to answer," he said.

"You don't have to be snappy."

They sat in silence. Blair watched Dan watch the meter. Was he still worried about money? She had thought that since Rufus had married Lily, they wouldn't need to worry about things like that anymore. She knew that some habits die hard though.

"We're here," Dan announced. He paid the driver and stepped out of the car.

"You brought me to Central Park?" Blair asked from inside the taxi.

"Blair, get out of the cab," Dan said coming around to her side.

He opened the door and waited for her to come out. He waited for a full three minutes and she still didn't get out.

"Hey man," the cabbie called to him. "Is your girl getting out or should I take her somewhere else?"

"I'm not his girl," Blair hissed out.

Dan grabbed Blair by the arm and pulled her out. He shut the door behind him and the cab pulled off.

"Why did you bring me here, Humphrey?"

"For exercise," he said simply.

"They have gyms for that Humphrey. As in I have a private gym," she started. "Why bring me out in this weather?"

"You need some fresh air Blair and besides it's a beautiful day."

Blair still wasn't convinced. She followed him to a bench and plopped herself down.

"Even if I were to exercise or whatever, I don't have the proper clothing. If you haven't noticed, I'm in heels."

"Way ahead of you," he said taking out a Nike bag. "I asked Dorota to pack up a pair of tennis shoes."

"I don't own any tennis shoes."

Dan laughed and put down the pair of plain white tennis shoes.

"I'm serious Humphrey," she snapped.

"Come on, Blair. Why are you adverse to exercise?"

"For one thing, I'm naturally thin so I don't need it," she said snottily.

Dan laced up his shoes and waited expectantly on Blair. She stared back at him sweetly.

"Come on, don't make things harder than they have to be," he said.

"Why shouldn't I?" she asked checking her nails.

"You heard what Martha said. Exercise is a good way to relieve anger."

"But I'm not angry right now, Humphrey. Although you are testing the waters," she said testily.

"Well maybe those waters need to be tested," he said biting his lip.

A flash of anger showed on Blair's face. Dan knew he was pushing Blair to her limits. But he needed to see if she had truly learned anything from the classes.

"What do you know, Humphrey? Maybe you have some anger issues with your mother. She did leave you after all."

A frown crossed Dan's face and Blair immediately felt guilty. She shouldn't have said that.

"Humphrey, I'm sor-," she started, but he held up his hand.

He started walking away from her. Blair wanted to call him back, but her pride kept her from doing so.

_Why did I have to say that? _Blair thought to herself. She had now alienated all of her friends. Well except Dorota. She still had Dorota.


	6. Chapter 6

"You know what I'm going to do, Dorota?" Blair asked brushing her chestnut curls.

"What Miss Blair?"

"I'm going to confront my problems head on," she said placing a jeweled headband on her head.

"How do you plan to do that, Miss Blair?"

Blair stared at her reflection for a moment. She didn't know how she was going to approach this. Should she sit Serena down and talk to her? That seemed like the simplest method. But Blair had the uncanny knack of making simple things harder than they needed to be.

She opened her tube of lip gloss and put a little on. She turned to Dorota.

"I'm going to talk to Serena," she said at last.

Dorota came to Blair and placed her hand on Blair's shoulder.

"That's very mature of you, Miss Blair."

"Yes it is and I aim to be a mature woman in control of her emotions."

Dorota patted Blair's shoulder. They stood like that for a moment before Blair said: "Now call the driver, I'm off to Serena's."

Blair arrived at the van der Woodsen penthouse. She stepped out of the towncar and was greeted by Vanya. She smiled faintly at him and made her way to the elevator.

She pushed the button for Serena's floor and then leaned against the railing. She suddenly felt panicked.

_What I'm thinking? _She thought to herself. What if Serena laughed in her face? No, that wasn't like Serena; but what if she didn't understand? What if she took offense? Despite feeling inferior to her for years, Serena was still Blair's best friend. And from the way she had left things with Dan, maybe her only friend.

Before she knew it, the elevator door was sliding open. Blair stepped out, but she didn't knock immediately. Something was holding her back.

_You're stronger than that, Blair. Remember you're a Waldorf_.

She knocked on the door. There was no turning back now.

She waited for a few seconds before the door was opened by Serena's younger brother, Eric. He smiled at her.

"Well if it isn't Blair? I haven't seen you around in awhile."

He stepped back to let Blair inside. She stepped inside and looked around. Things hadn't changed much. For some reason, she had thought that Lily would redecorate again after she married Rufus. Everything still looked the same.

"So you're here for Serena, am I correct?" Eric asked.

"Who else would I be here for?" Blair asked.

"I thought maybe you had come for Dan."

Blair froze up. Why was Dan here? Of course he was Lily's step-son, but he still lived in the apartment in Brooklyn. She hadn't expected him to be here.

"Serena, you have company!" Eric called before walking towards the kitchen.

Blair spun around towards the stairs. Serena came bounding down them. She looked perfect of course.

"Blair!"

Blair allowed herself to be embraced in a bear hug. She gently hugged Serena back. She had to admit that it felt nice.

"So what's up B?" Serena asked. She flopped into the white plush couch and looked up expectantly at Blair.

Blair sat gingerly down next to her and took a deep breath.

"I wanted to talk," Blair said.

"I'm all ears."

"Well you know I've been taking anger management classes right?" Blair asked.

"Yeah I heard from Dan. How's that going?"

"Great," Blair started. How did she open up this can of worms? She didn't want Serena to think she was blaming her for all her problems.

"Serena, I don't know how to say this. But over the years, I've really felt like second best to you."

Blair sighed. That had felt so good to get off her chest. She glanced at Serena and saw that she had a funny look on her face.

"I don't understand,"

"I'm not blaming you," Blair said "It's just that no matter how hard I work things seem to come easier to you. I've been a bit jealous."

Serena touched Blair's hand. Blair looked up at her best friend and saw her smiling.

"I'm sorry you feel like that, Blair. I honestly didn't mean for you to feel hurt."

Blair smiled back and gripped Serena's hand. "I know that now. I have to be responsible for my own feelings."

"Did you learn that in your classes?" Serena asked.

Before Blair could answer, someone else did.

"Martha had been teaching her well," Dan said from the stairs.

Blair turned towards the stairs. She had almost forgotten he was here. She wanted to be angry at him for listening in on their conversation. But she was just happy to see him.

"It's rude to listen in on people's conversations Humphrey," she said pouting slightly.

Dan laughed as he came down the stairs.

"You shouldn't be lecturing anyone on being rude, Blair."

Blair crossed her arms and stood up. She grudgingly admitted he had a point.

"You're right Humphrey. I want to apologize."

"All is forgotten, but on one condition," he said.

"What's that?" she asked.

"I want to take you to my favorite restaurant. Show you how Humphrey men do things."

Blair scoffed slightly. "McDonald's isn't new to me, Humphrey."

Dan laughed and held out his arms. She stepped into them and squeezed him hard. She had really missed him.

"Never change Blair," he whispered into her ear.


	7. Chapter 7

"You've come a long way in the past three weeks Blair," Martha said, looking over her papers.

"Thank you," Blair said politely and somewhat stiffly.

Martha glanced up from her papers. Blair was fidgeting with her headband. She had watched Blair enough to know when something was on her mind.

"Blair, is there something you would like to talk about?"

Blair looked up at Martha. How did she do that? She supposed the ability to tune into her patients' moods made her a perfect counselor.

"There is something weighing on my mind," Blair admitted.

"Would you like to talk about it?"

Blair was silent for a moment. She liked Martha, it was true. But she didn't exactly want to spill her deepest, darkest secrets to her. But she had to get this off her chest.

"Well there's this boy…" Blair started before hesitating.

"Go on."

"I really like him, but I'm not supposed to..."

Martha pushed back a wisp of her hair. "Why can't you like this boy exactly?"

"Because he's from Brooklyn!" Blair practically shouted.

"No need to shout, Blair. But I honestly don't see the problem."

Blair glared at her. How could she possibly understand anyway? She was from New Jersey. For an Upper East Side princess to even entertain the idea of dating someone from the opposite of the tracks was out of the question. She wasn't Serena and people didn't overlook her mistakes. But maybe…just maybe she could? After all, Lily had married Rufus with minimal consequences.

"Blair?"

Blair came to her senses. Suddenly she smiled at Martha. She stood up and shook her hand.

"Thank you," Blair said quietly before opening the office door and leaving quickly.

"Huh. I wonder what got into her?"

Blair knocked lightly on Dan's door. She waited for what seemed like hours until the door finally opened.

Dan looked surprised to see her. But he motioned for her to come inside. Blair stepped in and waited for him to close the door.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing you, Blair?" he asked.

Blair fidgeted with the ring on her finger. Now that she was here, she had lost all of her courage. What if he laughed in her face?

"I wanted to talk to you," she started.

Dan crossed his arms over his chest and watched her.

"Go ahead."

"Well I don't know how to say it exactly…" she trailed off.

"Is it bad news?" he asked.

"No, it's just it'll change things."

Dan walked over to where she stood and took her hand. "Tell me."

"I like you," she blurted out in a hurry.

Dan smiled slightly. "I know you like me, Blair. We spend a lot of time together. If we hated each other, I doubt we'd be friends. Although…"

"I mean I like you as more than a friend."

Dan was silent for a moment. But then he squeezed her hand. She looked up at him. He had a huge smile on his face.

He put his arms around her and she clutched him back.

"What does this mean for us?" he whispered into her hair.

"I don't know," she admitted. "But I'm willing to find out."


	8. Chapter 8

"How are things going with Dan?" Serena asked sipping her mocha.

Blair raised her eyebrows suspiciously at her best friend. Was Serena truly okay with Blair sort of kinda of dating her ex? Blair remembered what she had learned in her anger management classes. She shouldn't keep her feelings to herself, so she would ask Serena. After all, it was better to have these things out in the open right?

"Are you alright with me and Dan….you know seeing each other?" Blair asked.

Serena fingered her cup. It was a full minute before she answered, a full minute in which Blair worried over her response.

"I'd be lying if I said I was completely okay with it," Serena started. "But I know you two really like each other."

Blair blew out a breath of air. At least she wasn't mad.

Serena reached across the table and took Blair's hands in hers. Blair looked up at her.

"I want you to be happy B. If Dan makes you happy, that makes me happy and we both know that makes Dan happy."

They both burst out laughing. Dan had been happier in the past few weeks than he had in a year.

Blair caught her breath and looked at her designer watch.

"Oh it's almost 12:30. I'm supposed to meet Dan at 1. I'll talk to you later, S."

Blair stood up and brushed a few crumbs off of her skirt. She blew Serena a kiss before leaving.

After she saw Blair hail a taxi, Serena let a small sigh escape her. As long as they were happy.

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"Hello gorgeous," Dan said pulling Blair into a hug.

Blair scoffed but folded into his arms easily.

"Don't go all corny on me, Humphrey," she said leaning back and looking into his dark eyes. She had never noticed before, but he had really beautiful eyes.

"I won't on the condition that you give me a kiss," he said slyly.

Blair stepped back a little surprised. She looked around the coffee shop with all the other patrons.

"Here in public?" she asked dubiously.

Dan let out a little sigh. "You aren't afraid to be seen kissing me, are you?"

"Of c-course n-not," she stuttered

"Then kiss me."

Blair stepped closer to him and placed her hands on her cheeks. She leaned up and gently touched her lips to his before deepening the kiss. He put his arm around her waist and clutched her to him.

Reluctantly Blair broke the kiss. She looked up into Dan's eyes and smiled at him. He brushed a strand of hair out of her face.

"See that wasn't so hard was it?" he asked.

Blair laughed and punched his chest. "No I guess it wasn't. But I swear that picture will end up on Gossip Girl tomorrow."

"Are you ready for that?" he asked seriously.

"As long as I have you by my side I can face anything," she said reaching for his hand.

"Now who's being corny?"

They both laughed. But she meant what she said. Dan had been there for through every rough patch. She wouldn't even have admitted her feelings or problems if it wasn't for him. He was just the kind of person she wanted and needed.


	9. Epligoue

_Five Years Later_

Blair looked at the scene before her and smiled. Dan was playing with Madison, their two year old daughter.

He looked up from the building blocks and smiled quizzically at her.

"What's wrong?" He asked handing a block to Madison.

Blair shook her head slightly and bent down to their level.

"It's just that I never thought my life could be this perfect," she said placing a kiss on his slightly stubbled cheek.

Dan turned and caught her face with his hands. He gently placed a kiss on her lips.

"I want kiss too!" Madison gurgled before coming in between her parents.

Dan and Blair laughed and placed a kiss on their daughter's head.

"_This is where I truly belong," _Blair thought to herself.

The End.


End file.
